


The Way It Happens

by orphan_account



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: AU, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Arranged Marriage, Awkwardness, Fighting, Galra Keith (Voltron), M/M, Royal Lance, Sharing a Bed, Tags and Characters and Upped Rating (maybe) to be added with future chapters, Trans Girl Pidge, Trans Pidge, lover's spat, slight AU
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-08-20
Updated: 2016-09-07
Packaged: 2018-08-09 21:38:08
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 7,085
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7818238
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>"My family," Lance begins, once again. "Wants me to marry you. In the interest of intergalactic peace, diplomacy, and also to get other countries off our backs, because apparently marriage alliances are totally a thing that isn't outdated and medieval and kind of completely a terrible idea."</p><p>Keith just stares for a long moment, looking straight at Lance's serious face, so completely sure he's joking, until the reality of the moment sinks in, and he realizes that this is not Lance's joking face.</p><p>This is really happening. This is really going this way.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Had this idea just after work and decided to just run with it! Should be fun. I don't usually do multi-chapter fics, but I'll try to update as often as possible.

Is this really happening?Is this really going this way?

 

They are questions that seem more like they were for Lance than for Keith. Open-ended, fluid, not as solid as Keith liked.

 

But it's so odd, to find these things out, even though he was already becoming accustomed to them.

 

Finding out that Lance is royalty, now that, that was an event. What was he supposed to do with that? As it was, he'd muttered "Yeah, a royal pain in my ass" and sipped his juice (he wasn't sure how to describe it, only that it was vaguely fruity with a touch of coffee-like flavor - one of Hunk's better creations, really) to which Lance had responded with fake offense.

 

And Keith knew it was fake, which was a step in the right direction. Realizing how much of what Lance said and did was exaggerated or sarcastic or flat out a lie opened doors, made him a bit easier to understand. And Keith found himself wanting to understand Lance, wanting to understand the whole team, but somehow, especially Lance.

 

Lance, the conundrum, Lance, the confusion, Lance, the boy who was a cargo pilot and then brought them to a foreign planet far sooner than anyone could've imagined, before.

 

So Lance is royalty, yes, and then the announcement that they'd be making a brief stop back at Earth.

 

Because of Lance.

 

Who was royalty.

 

Royalty not of a big country, but of a small state, royalty who was fifth in line to the throne, royalty who felt he barely counted as a matter of state, but who was aware that his going missing could cause a panic.

 

Royalty who missed home, who cried when he found out they'd be briefly stopping back, and royalty who re-boarded the ship with fake cheer.

 

Fake, and Keith is the first to know, since everyone else had good reason to leave and stay for a while, while he only wants to breath the same air he'd been used to for so long and maybe grab some of his old stuff.

 

He finds that the air smelled and tasted odd, after being used to the ship's air, to Red's air, for so long, and that his things are dusty.

 

These are both acceptable facts.

 

Hunk has family to visit, Pidge has a mother to inform that she is finding her father and brother, but saving the universe first, Shiro has Allura (and Coran) to show around, and Lance has a country to calm.

 

Lance is the first back, which is shocking, considering how homesick he had been. It is shocking also because he had to stop a potentially international panic, which Keith had thought would take longer. He'd been prepared to be vaguely annoyed with Lance for how long he would take, as well as glad that his friend (friend, and what a strange word that was for Lance, but he'd been trying it out lately, in his head, and it was...fitting) would finally see his family again.

 

Keith didn't know his family, not really. His parents had died when he was young, and he'd only really known his mom's side, anyway, which he had since learned was because his father was Galra, so hey, intergalactic cousins out there somewhere, maybe, and complete panic to deal with, as well.

 

(His father was Galra and he was half-enemy as far as he was concerned and it was sick and wrong and he'd told the team as soon as he felt able, so they had more time to find a new Red Paladin, and they'd looked at him like he was crazy, like they'd never even think of replacing him, which he'd since learned was true. He was still learning so much about himself, in the mean time, learning how to switch between forms, learning to deal with longer nails and weird ears and fluffier hair and night vision (which was cool) and yellower eyes and all-around all the time Galra traits.)

 

(Somehow, he was managing.)

 

(All the team had helped, but it was then that he'd begun to learn to call Lance a friend, given all the unconditional support he'd shown. Lance was...amazing, maybe.)

 

Keith doesn't understand family like everyone else did, but when Lance came back on the ship, looking shell-shocked and with completely false cheer, he knows something much be really, really wrong with his family. Is a sibling sick? Is someone dying? No, Lance would show grief if that was so. Is he expected to do something awful for his country? Novels suggested that this was something that happened not infrequently to royalty. Is he being married off? No, that was ridiculous. Who could Lance marry that would be able to handle him being gone for so long? No one, that was who. No one on Earth could possibly be prepared to deal with Lance, anyway. No one in the universe, even.

 

"What's wrong?" Keith asks, believing, somehow, that Lance would tell him.

 

"My family," Lance says, slowly. "Wants me to marry you."

 

"What." Keith says, shocked, confused, and perhaps a bit amazed that he could be good enough to marry anyone. 

 

"My family," Lance begins, once again. "Wants me to marry you. In the interest of intergalactic peace, diplomacy, and also to get other countries off our backs, because apparently marriage alliances are totally a thing that isn't outdated and medieval and kind of completely a terrible idea."

 

Keith just stares for a long moment, looking straight at Lance's serious face, so completely sure he's joking, until the reality of the moment sinks in, and he realizes that this is not Lance's joking face.

 

This is really happening. This is really going this way.

 

It occurs to Keith briefly that he actually did guess this might be what's wrong with Lance, and he wants to laugh, somewhat hysterically, but he also wants to say okay, which is crazy, just crazy and weird and freaky and not something Keith knows how to deal with.

 

He opens his mouth to say something, anything, probably okay, which. Which is something, Keith can deal with it later, when Lance interrupts.

 

"I'm not going to do it." He says. "I won't marry you."

 

"Do you really hate me that much?" Keith says, after a moment, a bit shocked, almost offended, or hey, scratch that, _really_ offended, somehow, that Lance is so apparently repelled by the idea of marrying him.

 

"I don't hate you," Lance says, so serious, so unlike himself. "I never hated you. Actually, I'm in love with you. But I won't marry you, I won't force this thing on us, on you, that never would've happened naturally in the first place. I refuse to. And I told them that, and they were upset and might disown me and I left before I could find out whether or not that was actually happening."

 

Lance moves to leave, then, and pauses, just at the opening of the doorway. 

 

"See you later, Keith." He says, then leaves, maybe to go to his room, maybe to train, because in Keith's experience, punching stuff usually helps make a person feel better.

 

And Keith is left, dumbstruck, with a thousand thoughts running wild through his head.

 

This really happened. This really went that way.

 

And Keith, for reasons he can't explain, feels his chest ache, terribly.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Keith is getting better at asking for help from his teammates, who seem all-to-eager to add their opinions on Lance's and his marital status.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm thinking of updating this twice weekly, on Fridays and Mondays/Tuesdays. I was going to wait until tomorrow to post this and just do Fridays and Tuesdays, but I'm impatient and eager, sue me.

The second person to re-board the ship is Hunk.

 

Hunk, who is an excellent person, in Keith's opinion, and also a rather...interesting one. He isn't by any means as odd as Lance, but he has certain quirks that Keith can't quite explain.

 

Such as saying "Whoa, smells like angsty Lance in here," when he first walks into the kitchen.

 

"What?" Keith asks, feeling like that's all he ever says. 

 

 "It smells like angsty Lance," Hunk repeats. "What happened with his family?"

 

Keith purses his lips. To tell or not to tell? This is Hunk, trustworthy, good, Hunk, but it's also one of the oddest experiences of Keith's life to date, one he doesn't particularly feel like repeating.

 

Then again, Keith has been learning more and more lately that letting people in is an excellent way to actually deal with problems.

 

"Lance's family wants me to marry him," Keith says. "And Lance is in love with me."

 

"Okay," Hunk says, not looking particularly phased, but still taking the time to properly sit down. "Let's start again. What happened?"

 

"Lance came in," Keith says. "And I asked what was wrong, since there was obviously something wrong, and then he said that his family wanted us to get married but he completely refuses, which is sort of offensive, and then when I asked if it was because he really hated me that much, he said he was in love with me."

 

"Yeah, sounds like a pretty typical visit to Lance's family," Hunk muses. "Definitely not the weirdest thing they've ever told him to do."

 

Keith just stares in some sort of shock, possibly awe, at Hunk.

 

"At least it makes some kind of sense!" Hunk defends. "I mean, in the interest of peace and diplomacy and all that, since you're half-Galra, it'd be a pretty good gesture of "hey look, the aliens aren't all bad, one of them is with a human prince," you know?"

 

"No," Keith says. "I don't know, but for the sake of argument we'll pretend that I do."

 

"Well you've got to understand something about it," Hunk says, with something of a smirk. "Since you're so offended that Lance doesn't want to marry you."

 

"Shut up." Keith says. "I..."

 

"Yeah," Hunk says. "Thought so. You totally like him, too."

 

" _What_?" Keith manages, desperately searching for some sort of denial and coming up with nothing. "Lance is - I don't - He's - "

 

"But!" Hunk interrupts (with Keith is actually grateful for, seeing as he wasn't making much progress on the whole "coherent speech" thing). "Bigger problems. Lance is rarely that serious. I've seen him in serious mode maybe three times, and each time it was something huge. Not to say he can't be serious, we both know he's capable of it, just not like this. And as the best friend, it is my duty to attend to him. So, let me know if you need to talk to someone, but I need to go deal with angsty Lance before he stinks up the whole castle."

 

"Alright," Keith says, vaguely confused, but not upset. "Thanks."

 

"Not a problem," Hunk says warmly, patting Keith on the shoulder before leaving. "Try Pidge! She might have some good advice."

 

Keith pales slightly at the idea.

 

* * *

 

Keith sits in what feels like awkward silence after Pidge boards the ship and enters the kitchen. She stares at him for a moment, then sits down, opens her laptop, and focuses directly on the screen, ignoring him completely.

 

Keith doesn't really know what to do at this point. Hunk started the conversation before, in a very direct and useful manner, but Pidge is just. Sitting there.

 

Which she wouldn't be doing if she didn't want to, Keith knows, so she must care at least a little about why he's sulking (not sulking, not pouting, not if he wants to keep his dignity (threw his dignity out weeks ago) intact).

 

Keith clears his throat. 

 

Pidge keeps tapping at her laptop.

 

"Pidge." Keith says, without much to his tone, which is better than the vague anger he sometimes has. "I have a problem."

 

"Don't we all, pal?" She muses, peeking over the top of her glasses, while still typing.

 

"Pidge." Keith repeats.

 

"Alright, alright," Pidge says, closing her laptop and crossing her arms over the table. "Lay it on me."

 

"Lance won't marry me," Keith says.

 

"O-kaayyy," Pidge draws out the word, eyes widening slightly. "That's a bit beyond me, my guy."

 

"And he's in love with me." Keith says. "Also, I didn't propose to him. His family wants us to get married, and he won't do it."

 

"Aw," Pidge says, flatly. "How romantic."

 

"It isn't about that!" Keith protests.

 

"How is it not?" Pidge asks. "You obviously want him to want to marry you, and you're upset because he won't even consider it, even though he's in love with you, which you apparently didn't know because you're an idiot, and you're in love with him, and in your funny little mind, that means marriage is an option."

 

"I am _not_ in love with _Lance_ ," Keith protests, and Pidge rolls her eyes. 

 

"And I'm a boy just because I've got - " She starts, and Keith puts up a hand.

 

"Not necessary." He says. "Fine, I might _like_ Lance. As a person. And a friend. And maybe I find him attractive, but I'm not in _love_ with him!"

 

"Then why do you want to marry him so badly?" Pidge asks, smirking. "I think you like him a lot and you should both deal with liking each other and also all of your other responsibilities and just get married. I mean, it makes a lot of sense to just do it."

 

"How so?" Keith asks, if only to hear the reason why two separate people have decided it just "makes sense" for Lance and him to up and hitch out of the blue.

 

Which it doesn't.

 

At all.

 

(Maybe a bit? Hunk had points, and if Pidge thinks so too - )

 

"Diplomacy." Pidge states. "Face it, Keith, you're half-Galra and they're our greatest enemies. Publicity, if nothing else. And because it'll strengthen our team bond if we have two people with their own deeply intimate and legal bond. Don't think of it like a preteen girl squealing about how cute Lance's butt is - don't tell me anything about his butt, in fact, keep that to yourself - think about it like two consenting adults forming a pact, a bond, with each other."

 

"Stop making sense," Keith says, a bit angrily. "Lance already said he won't do it."

 

"Lance is being a drama queen," Pidge says, bluntly. "He's already decided to be a romantic about it when no one's asking him to be."

 

"I guess," Keith admits. "I mean. It makes sense, you and Hunk are right a lot, and I'm not exactly opposed to the idea. I just don't see how I'm going to convince Lance."

 

"Try talking to him," Pidge says. "Communication works wonders."

 

Keith nods and stands up.

 

"Thanks, Pidge." He says, ruffling her hair on his way out. She doesn't slap him away, so he supposes this counts as a bonding moment, too.

 

* * *

 

Keith feels nervous as he raps on Lance's door and tells himself that nervousness is ridiculous in this situation, he's just working on the logic of his friends and teammates, just asking Lance to marry him for diplomatic and not at all personal reasons.

 

Right.

 

Okay.

 

Not okay not okay not okay not okay -

 

Too late to run, unfortunately, as Lance's door slides open just as Keith decides to bolt.

 

"Keith?" Lance asks, eyes a bit red, sounding mildly confused and possibly a bit distressed.

 

"Marry me." Keith blurts.

 

Lance just stares.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This work is being influenced A LOT by the comments, which is a mix of good and bad, as it gives me ideas but goes against my original plan so I'm kinda making it up as I go along, here. Bear with me, please, and pretty, pretty please leave comments! I love them and they give me fuel for writing, so if you want to see more of this work, that's how to see it faster and more consistently!
> 
> Also, I had a lot of feelings about writing Pidge in this chapter, since she's my favorite character, and I wasn't sure how well I'd write her, so please tell me how I did on characterization, not just for the Pidgeon, but for other characters as well! Side note: I went with trans girl Pidge for this work because I saw a post on tumblr that changed my opinion on Pidge's gender a lot and had several good points, so there's that for you.
> 
> Anyway, find me at:
> 
> [pennamepersona.tumblr.com](http://www.pennamepersona.tumblr.com)


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Keith proposes in the most reasonable way he can manage and Lance goes through the motions of deciding.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry, I know this was supposed to be out yesterday, but I had school stuff, so I wrote it up today and then I have to work on more school stuff, so forgive it being a bit short, please!

"What?" Lance says. "No, no way!"

 

"Not exactly the reaction I was looking for from my proposal, but I suppose it should be expected," Keith says. "Still, you're wrong."

 

"Okay, first of all," Lance says, gesturing with his fingers. "That was a shitty proposal. You used way too much bluntness, which is a tricky variable in romance! Second of all, I literally just told you I wouldn't marry you, so great listening skills there, Keith! And third of all, I am so not wrong, I already explained why I'm not wrong, and I really don't feel like doing it again, so I'm just gonna go and let you think about what you've done wrong today." 

 

Lance moves to go back into his room, so Keith does what feels natural and grabs his hand, which feels odd and intimate, more so than the marriage proposal did. 

 

"Listen to me," Keith insists. "Please."

 

Lance pauses, like he's considering his options for a moment, then sighs.

 

"Fine." He says. "Can't be worse than what I've already heard today."

 

"I don't want to marry you because of romance," Keith says. "I want to marry you because it makes sense."

 

"Ouch," Lance says. "Also, how so?"

 

"Diplomatically, it's perfect. The Galra are our biggest enemy, so a human prince marrying a half-Galra would be a great show of peace, and it'd also bring some suspicion off of us, I think." Keith says, still holding onto Lance's hand, which he can't seem to stop concentrating on. "Hunk and Pidge think it's a good idea, too, and it would help us bond. Don't think of it romantically, think of it like a pact."

 

"And I thought Hunk was being crazy," Lance mutters. "But no, you really are serious."

 

"So," Keith says. "Marry me."

 

"I..." Lance shakes his head. "Keith, I _am_ in love with you. You haven't forgotten that part, right? Pretty sure I totally said that part."

 

"I know," Keith says, pushing his own feelings to the back of his mind. "But that's not really the most important thing here."

 

"It's pretty important to me!" Lance cries. "What, am I supposed to pretend I don't care whether or not we get married? I do care! We wouldn't even be having this conversation if it weren't for my family, and I don't want to get married just for the sake of diplomacy. I never have."

 

"Lance, you're being unreasonable." Keith says, slightly annoyed. "It isn't about what we want. It's about what makes sense."

 

"How is this not about what we want?" Lance yanks his hand from Keith's grasp to point a finger directly into his face. "It's _marriage_."

 

"Well then, I want us to get married." Keith says, bluntly. "Do you?"

 

"That is so not the point," Lance splutters.

 

"Yes it is," Keith says. "It's exactly the point. Do you want to marry me?"

 

"Well, I mean, it isn't exactly a repulsive idea," Lance admits. "But I don't want it to be because of diplomatic bullshit. I want it to be because we want to do it. And I was kind of hoping it'd be years from now, with an established relationship behind it? Call me old-fashioned, but I wanted some romance, Keith!"

 

"That's not old-fashioned." Keith says. "Old-fashioned is what I'm suggesting. Get married now, have a big deal made out of it on Earth, then get to know each other better and develop a relationship while we're fighting out here."

 

" _Mierda_ ," Lance swears. "Fuck. I hate this, I hate that it got brought up, and I hate that it makes sense."

 

"Well, it does." Keith crosses his arms. "So quit pouting over it and make a decision."

 

"I suppose," Lance says. "I...might be able to stand the concept of marrying you. A little bit. Like, the tiniest amount of marriage possible. Signing names on a certificate and that, no big wedding, no matter what my family says."

 

"Deal." Keith says. "I've never been a fan of big weddings, anyway."

 

" _Dios_ ," Lance says. "Wasn't expecting this when I woke up this morning."

 

"Me neither," Keith admits. "But we may as well."

 

"Exactly the attitude to have, Keith, my pal!" Lance says, swinging an arm over Keith's shoulders and moving them both down the hall. "Well, may as well go find Shiro and get this over with."

 

"Wow," Keith mutters. "The romance is already gone." 

 

Lance absently smacks Keith's arm, which feels domestic, in a way, and makes Keith hope desperately that he isn't blushing because of it. That would be dumb, and he would probably never live it down.

 

"Shut up," Lance says. "I have to ask Space Dad if I can marry his little brother now."

 

"Wait," Keith says, suddenly panicked. "Do I have to ask your parent's permission before we get married?"

 

Lance throws back his head and laughs, just a bit off from usual, and Keith realizes that this is going really fast, that Lance's emotions are probably still very much off, and feels a pang in his chest.

 

"You know, we don't have to do this right away," Keith offers, unsure for the first time since demanding Lance marry him.

 

"Nope, not getting out of it that quickly!" Lance says, mostly cheerfully. "You already proposed, buddy, we're doing this."

 

"Alright," Keith says, not knowing if it's his place to ask if Lance is okay, not knowing if it will be once they're married, and realizing rather suddenly that there's a lot about Lance he doesn't know, and maybe, just maybe, this is going to be the perfect opportunity to find out.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Find me at: [pennamepersona.tumblr.com](http://www.pennamepersona.tumblr.com)
> 
> Kudos are good, comments are even better, and I've got a rough idea of how this maybe will go, but talking about it helps, so if anyone wants to contribute to this fic with suggestions and/or comments, that's awesome!


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which they get hitched.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ha! This one's on time and longer, so take that, school!!

Lance is pulling Keith along hallways, and it feels tinged with wrong, but Keith supposes he's already made up his mind about this, in short time, as he has with all other big decisions in his life.

 

And it's odd, really, that this would be happening, but they've all been such a good team lately, somehow it makes some sort of sense to make it a better team, and yes, _Keith has read novels_ , he knows roughly how this works out.

 

Though, then again, in his novels marriage seemed to mostly be about sex and compromise on the woman's part, and there is no woman's part, here, and there's certainly not been any sex yet, Keith's not remotely sure where Lance stands on sex and especially sex with him, he just knows that Lance is in love with him and they're getting married and evidently still living in a time period where those two are totally mutually exclusive. 

 

They get to the main entrance just as Shiro and Allura (and Coran) are coming back onto the ship. They appear to have had a very good time (even Coran, who was completely and utterly a third-wheel), which means that now may be the best moment to break it to them that they're all about to be living with a married couple.

 

"Space Dad!" Lance exclaims, not removing his arm from around Keith, which is. Well, it's not unusual for engaged people to be clingy, but they're hardly the norm. 

 

"Lance," Shiro sighs. "I thought that coming home and seeing your actual dad would have cured you of this."

 

"If it makes you feel better," Lance says. "I did call my actual dad Earth dad and he was very confused as to why."

 

"That doesn't make me feel better." Shiro says, flatly. 

 

"What is your arm doing around Keith?" Allura asks, nosing directly into their personal space. 

 

( _Their_ personal space, as if that's a thing that two people can own together, and is that a part of marriage, owning joint personal space? Keith has no real frame of reference and suspects that asking Lance would result in awkwardness or a joke about "space.")

 

"Well, seeing as how we're engaged now, I thought it was right to treat my fiancé with a bit of extra affection," Lance says, sounding just a touch closer to normal, and Keith wonders if that's Allura's doing, somehow, if there is something there, but no, Lance said he was in love with Keith, so that possibly isn't it.

 

Lance, Keith muses, not for the first time, is very confusing.

 

"Engaged to be married?" Coran nearly shouts, shoving even closer to Lance and Keith than Allura did, examining each of them, presumably for head trauma.

 

"Yes," Keith says, before Lance can pull some awful line. "We're going to get married. Right now."

 

(And if Lance's arm tightens around Keith just a bit at that, Keith supposes it could be for a multitude of reasons, and perhaps it would be kind not to mention it.)

 

"Married." Shiro says, eyebrows raising. "You two. You're getting married."

 

"That's what we said!" Lance says, cheerfully, not that Keith buys it for a second.

 

Shiro pauses for a moment, letting his brain catch up with the oddness going on in front of him, which Allura seems to have mastered in record time.

 

"Why?" She asks, circling around them and looking oddly closely at them. "You two are supposed rivals. Why the sudden urge to engage in matrimony?"

 

"It was Lance's family's idea," Keith says. "And Hunk and Pidge and I decided that it made sense, and Lance agreed, so we're going to get married. For diplomatic reasons."

 

"A political marriage?" Shiro murmurs. "Lance, I thought -"

 

"Yep, all makes sense, just gonna up and get hitched, as Texas boy would say," Lance rambles. "No problems here, only signing a piece of paper and then we're all official!"

 

Shiro looks concerned, Coran looks intrigued, and Allura looks ecstatic.

 

Keith has a sudden thought that maybe this isn't as clear-cut as it seems to be, but Lance yanks him along regardless. 

 

"C'mon, get Galra-ed up!" He demands. "Might as well milk this for all it's worth!"

 

Keith obliges, concentrating and feeling himself grow in places that feel wrong for a moment, closing his eyes tightly and letting the transformation cover him. It hurts, slightly, which no one but Shiro knows, or maybe Lance wouldn't have asked it of him. Keith can never be sure of these things.

 

Keith is beginning to feel like he's never going to be sure of anything ever again.

 

* * *

 

It feels odd, to be fully in Galra form and running about a capital building. It feels wrong, almost, except he's with Lance, who seems to be thrilled about his appearance and how shocking it is to everyone.

 

They finally reach something of a throne room, and Lance just barges into it, no class, no finesse, and utterly the prince that Keith somehow isn't surprised that he is, anymore.

 

"Mom, Dad," Lance pants, out of breath from running. "I'm here...to get....married, even though it's still totally dumb."

 

A middle-aged couple sits on the two largest thrones in the room, staring at Lance, which is almost odd, considering Keith's undeniably alien appearance. 

 

Then again, if anyone is ridiculous enough to bring attention away from a Galra, it's probably Lance.

 

"You're here to get married," The queen says, slowly. "Despite yelling in our faces earlier that there was no way it was going to be happening any time, ever, no matter what we said."

 

"No matter if we disowned you," The king continues. "Which we were actually going to do because, once again, Lance, we have no other choice."

 

"Yes." Lance says, simply, while Keith stares at him. He hadn't actually thought that Lance was being serious about being disowned for refusing to marry him, but here they were, with actual royalty admitting to threatening to disown their own son because he wouldn't marry one of his friends for purely political and diplomatic reasons.

 

"Well that's just stupid," Keith says, before he can really think about it. "He's your _son_. That usually means something to people. You were going to disown him just because he wouldn't marry me? Hell, _I_ wouldn't marry me. Threatening to disown him wouldn't change anything, anyway,  since this is _Lance_ we're talking about. Don't you people know your own son at all?"

 

Everyone in the room is looking at Keith in shock, but somehow, the only face Keith cares about at the moment is Lance's, which is shocked, but also touched.

 

"So this is the man you've chosen to marry," The queen says, an eyebrow raised.

 

"The man you chose for me to marry," Lance corrects. "But yeah, this is Keith. He's purple and we love him."

 

"Ah," The king says, delicately. 

 

"Well," The queen says, clapping her hands together in a way that is all Lance. "We have the papers ready, still, in the drawing room, if you'd like to sign them. We'll have time for the proper wedding later, of course, but - "

 

"No big wedding." Lance says. "Just the paperwork, and then we're out."

 

"But Lance - " The king objects, only to be cut off by Lance's raised hand.

 

"You were going to disown me if I didn't get married," He says. "Which I am. But I have no interest in what you have to say right now. I love you guys, and this is the last we'll see of each other for a while, so I don't want to fight. Again. But I'm still not happy with you."

 

"Understandable, I suppose," The queen says, with a carefully neutral expression. "Well, if you and...Keith...will come this way, we'll finish up the necessities and then you can be on your way."

 

She stands, and Lance follows her out of the room, holding onto Keith's wrist and pulling him along, again, which is totally not necessary, but for a reason that's just beyond him, he can't find himself minding.

 

They go into the drawing room, and the queen gestures to the papers neatly stacked on the table. Lance immediately picks up a pen and starts signing, after hesitating only slightly, as though he's already decided to sign him life away, and it's only now occurring to him what a big decision that is.

 

Keith, on the other hand, has no problem signing, having already decided that this was what was going to be happening, and as usual, sticking to his guns without any real thought behind it.

 

When they finish, there's a slightly awkward pause, and then the king and queen congratulate them and suddenly they're on their way and they're out of the castle and Lance still looks troubled, so Keith puts a hand on his face (Lance is holding onto the other one and Keith still doesn't mind, though he suspects he will soon, since personal space is totally still an issue with him) and turning it to look directly at him.

 

And then Lance is murmuring "You may now kiss the bride," and leaning in to softly kiss Keith, so gently, so tenderly, so carefully, and Keith is intimately aware that Lance is in love with him in that moment, and yet, it doesn't feel wrong in the slightest.

 

When they pull apart, Keith pecks at Lance's lip one last time, and says "You're totally the bride, you know," just to get Lance riled up, and it works.

 

He yells all the way back to the ship, and Keith smiles the entire time.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So the whole "he's purple and we love him" is based off a tumblr post that I cannot find, but it's a good one. Anyway, next chapter is shooting for Friday/Saturday! Hope you liked this one.
> 
> (Headcanons included in this chapter: Keith is Texan and he had some paperback novels in his desert shack because he needed *something* to keep him occupied when not hanging around in Blue's cave or thinking about conspiracy theories and all of them were Terrible but he loves them)


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Awkwardness and Sleeping Arrangements.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I wrote most of this in one sitting because I've been busy (and procrastinating) so if it's lower quality, I'm sorry. It's going to be mostly filler until I can come up with some Bigger Ideas, which are always welcome to outside assistance.

It's warm.

 

That's the first thing Keith notices, the warmth. It isn't just physical warmth, either, it's comfortable warmth. The warmth he images small children feel when they sleep with their parents, or perhaps more accurately, the warmth lovers feel when intertwined.

 

He's intertwined with his lover, now. With Lance.

 

He smiles, stretches a bit, and reaches out for - 

 

His hand feels nothing.

 

He wakes up.

 

* * *

 

It's the morning after his wedding, and he's sleeping alone. Keith can't quite feel that that's wrong, somehow, to be alone when his husband is so close by. He doesn't have a lot to base this feeling on, and he knows it would be even weirder to have woken up with Lance next to him, especially since Lance is acting so oddly around him. 

 

But at the same token, they are married for a reason, and they may as well make that reason as obvious as possible. Their bond will likely strengthen the team's bond, and the next time they come to Earth, it would probably be best to show a pair of people who loved each other, not who acted awkwardly around each other.

 

Keith barely notices the thought until he's almost to the kitchen, but he stops himself quickly, just at the doorway.

 

Wait.

 

  
_Love_?

 

* * *

 

After he's grabbed breakfast (see: goo), he heads to the training room, where Shiro already is.

 

"Hey," Keith says, easily, casually. Shiro smiles, a bit oddly. Is Lance's weirdness spreading?

 

"Hello," Shiro says. "How was the wedding? When you two came back yesterday, you both went straight to your rooms."

 

"We were tired," Keith explains. "It was fine, I guess. I yelled at his parents. Want to spar?"

 

Shiro blinks.

 

"You yelled at his parents?" He asks, sounding surprised, which Keith is mildly confused by. It doesn't really seem very out of the ordinary for him to have done.

 

"Yes." Keith says. "They were going to disown him if he didn't marry me and that's stupid, so I told them that. They took it pretty well, actually."

 

"Alright," Shiro says, after taking a deep breath. "And are you...happy? I know marrying Lance probably wasn't on a list of things you really wanted to do yesterday. Or at all, I suppose."

 

"I'm..." Keith pauses for a moment, considering. "Confused. I had a weird dream right before I woke up, and I think I want to sleep with Lance."

 

"Okay," Shiro says, eyes wide. "There are certain things I don't really need to know, especially from someone I consider a brother, but I guess I'm glad you feel that you can come to me with this?"

 

"What?" Keith asks, just before his words sink in. "Oh, no. No, no, not that. I mean, not that Lance isn't attractive, just. I did not mean _that_ , not at all. I want to sleep in the same bed as him, that is it."

 

"Oh," Shiro breathes a sigh of relief. "Not that it's unusual to want to have sex with your husband, but the two of you did get married in unusual and very fast circumstances. I think you should talk to Lance about it."

 

Talking, Keith thinks, is beginning to get old.

 

"Fine, fine," Keith says. "Can we just spar now?"

 

Shiro moves into position, and Keith quickly follows, relieved that he won't have to think about feelings any longer, at least not in this room.

 

Once out of it, he suspects it's all fair game.

 

* * *

 

Keith knocks on Lance's door after taking a quick shower, only to find it slide open immediately afterword. Lance doesn't appear to realize that Keith can see him, as he's sitting on his bed, inspecting something small.

 

"Lance?" Keith says, quietly. Lance still jumps a bit, clearly surprised to see Keith.

 

"What is it, buddy?" Lance asks. 

 

"I think we should sleep together." Keith says.

 

"And here I thought I was the one with problems in this relationship," Lance says, staring at Keith like he's insane. "No, Keith, I'm not having sex with you. No way, no how. I draw the line at marriage."

 

"That's not what I mean!" Keith exclaims. "Honestly, you and Shiro need to get your minds out of the gutter."

 

"You asked Shiro to sleep with you, too?" Lance asks. "Should I feel betrayed? You really wanted to cheat on me that badly? And so soon, too!"

 

Keith puts his head in his hands.

 

"You're terrible," He says, the words coming out muffled through his fingers.

 

"True," Lance agrees. "Anyway, not sex, apparently, since it'd be just weird if you wanted to sleep with Shiro, except if you were, like, _actually_ sleeping - oh! That's what you meant, isn't it?"

 

"Yes," Keith says. "I think we should share a room."

 

"Um," Lance says. "Okay."

 

"Seriously? You're agreeing very quickly with everything I say these days," Keith muses. "It's very odd."

 

"What can I say, my husband has great ideas," Lance says, getting up off his bed and placing whatever it was he was inspecting onto his bedside table. 

 

"Whatever," Keith says, rolling his eyes. "Wanna get some food?"

 

"Finally!" Lance says, slinging an arm casually over Keith's shoulder, in a way that is familiar and comforting. "Thought you'd never ask."

* * *

 

They ask Coran about a larger room for the two of them to share, and Coran quickly supplies them with a place, telling them to go ahead and start moving in immediately, if they like.

 

He seems completely at ease with their status as newlyweds, while everyone else seems just a bit...off, about it, except Allura, who is taking it in stride as easily as Coran.

 

Perhaps there are different rules for Altean marriage, Keith thinks. It's likely, if nothing else, and there are plenty of other differences between their cultures. 

 

And so, that night, they're lying down in the same bed, extremely awkwardly, about a foot between them. Keith decides that he hasn't the patience for Lance's weirdness when it's this late and settles down to sleep, curling in on himself and almost immediately sinking back into a familiar dream.

 

"Lance," He breathes, just before sleep gathers him in comforting clutches. "Lance."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> La dee da, Keith has feelings, do do dooo


	6. Chapter 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Couple's firsts are usually celebrated - not in this case

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know, I was supposed to update yesterday, I was busy, sorry! I'm going to keep being busy all semester, so updates might not come as cleanly, but I'll try to update at least once a week.

When Keith wakes up, he's warm, and for a moment, he's dreading opening his eyes and seeing that the warmth is, once again, just a dream.

 

And then he opens his eyes and sees nothing.

 

Until he looks down, and then he sees a tan hand curled around his abdomen, gently pressing him closer to the warmth behind him, which has got to be the body connected to this hand, which is undoubtedly Lance's.

 

Lance is spooning him?

 

It's comfortable, despite the oddness, and, frankly, despite the novelty, of the situation. It's so comfortable that Keith has the urge to sink back into oblivion and just let Lance hold him, which is a very abnormal thought for Keith, who usually jumps up to start his day as soon as his eyes open.

 

But this feels different, in his mind, feels right, to be here, with his husband. Husband is such a comfortable word, already, although it's hardly happened, and though Keith is accustomed to change (have to be, in foster care), there's something different about this.

 

That makes Keith's eyes shoot back open and his body freeze up, which causes a slight groan from behind him.

 

"Wha...?" A sleepy complaint from Lance, whose head begins to rise.

 

"Why am I so okay with this." Keith means to ask it, but it comes out as more of a statement. 

 

"What," Pause for a yawn. "Are you talking about?"

 

"Why am I so okay with being married to you." Keith states it, once again, because he's maybe panicking, just a little bit.

 

"Because I'm gorgeous and perfect in every conceivable way," Lance yawns, waking up enough to flatter himself, but not much more.

 

"Be serious, Lance." Keith snaps. "Why the hell is this okay with me? Why did we even do this?"

 

"Diplomacy." Lance says with a sigh, sitting up. "That's pretty much it, just a better relationship on Earth and then I think Pidge said something about strengthening the team? I don't know, man, it was pretty much your idea. Second thoughts?"

 

He sounds slightly bitter, which Keith ignores in favor of his own concerns.

 

"Well, we sort of rushed into this, and suddenly I'm fine waking up next to you and I _want_ to wake up next to you, and come on, Lance, what was that kiss about?"

 

"Me being selfish, I guess," Lance snaps, getting out of bed. "You don't want to be married to me anymore, fine. Not like I was too keen on the idea in the first place. The only reason I agreed is because I'm used to looking at things with diplomacy in mind first and foremost, even though I hate it, so blame me all you want."

 

He turns so sharply out the door that he may as well have slammed it (an impossibility with these doors, and more's the pity, in Keith's opinion).

 

Keith sits up on the bed and looks down at his hands for a moment, before getting up and getting dressed.

 

"Guess the honeymoon's over," He mutters.

 

* * *

 

Lance isn't at breakfast, which is a surprise, considering Lance's love of food, which may be easily rivaled by Hunk's, but is hardly insignificant. 

 

"Where's your hubby?" Pidge asks, slightly sing-songing, which probably means she got some important piece of work done last night and caught enough hours of rest to properly enjoy her mocking.

 

"Beats me," Keith mutters, angrily stabbing at his goo.

 

"Lover's spat?" She asks, blinking her eyes up at him, hands folded beneath her chin, the perfect picture of innocence.

 

What a load.

 

"We're not lovers," Keith snaps (again). "We're friends, and maybe not even that."

 

"But..." Allura looks vaguely alarmed. "You are married!"

 

"Yeah, what of it." Keith huffs, earning a Look from Shiro that's both disappointed and concerned.

 

"Married individuals generally attempt to forge a better union, not dissolve the one already formed," Allura says, seeming upset. "Unless things are different on Earth?"

 

"No, princess," Shiro says. "Well, not exactly. From what you've described to me, Altean marriages are different than Earth marriages mostly through love. In Altean marriages, you said that love is generally expected to be discovered. In Earth marriages, it's expected that the people are already in love."

 

"Then why did Keith and Lance get married?" Allura asks, narrowing her eyes slightly at Keith.

 

"Special circumstances," Hunk explains, scraping out his bowl. "Lance is a prince, so it's expected that he marries diplomatically, for the betterment of his country. Diplomatic marriages don't always involve love."

 

"Can we not talk about it?" Keith asks, angrily. "I'm sick of marriage talk."

 

"Already?" Pidge says, mostly under her breath. "Whoa, who's gonna tell Lance?"

 

"Keith is!" Allura exclaims, getting up, crossing to Keith, and grabbing him by the colllar. "Keith is going to go to Lance right now and talk to him, so they can grow a better union. I will not tolerate imperfect marriages between members of Voltron!"

 

Allura yanks him bodily out of the dining hall, with Pidge calling "Rest in pieces, Keith!" behind them.

 

* * *

 

Allura pulls Keith along, uncaring for his tripping, and Keith briefly wonders what he did to get himself into this situation, and how Allura of all people became his marriage counselor.

 

Beyond that, he's finding himself very uncomfortable with these discussions of love, recently. He's never really loved anyone for long, except Shiro, who doesn't really count, and he's only beginning to get used to _liking_ his fellow paladins.

 

He can't imagine loving them.

 

Can't imagine loving Lance.

 

Lance.

 

Why was he so comfortable, so quickly, with being with Lance and whoa, wait a second brain, just because he's _married_ to Lance doesn't mean he's _with_ Lance except it kind of _does_ , doesn't it?

 

...Doesn't it?

 

He's not prepared for revelations like this, he really isn't, and here they already are at the training room (the training room? What an odd place for Lance to be, usually this is where Keith goes to brood (not that Keith broods), Lance broods with friends, not alone) and it's too late and Keith has to face...

 

"You are the last person I want to see right now, Keith."

 

...Lance.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> First fight, first love, ahhhhhhh

**Author's Note:**

> So I know there's lots of stuff going on, but it all felt like a good idea and hopefully you guys like it? Anyway, kudos are good, comments are great, find me at:
> 
> [pennamepersona.tumblr.com](http://www.pennamepersona.tumblr.com)
> 
> [Buy me a coffee!](https://ko-fi.com/A375K8Q)


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